An Indian man who traveled from Liberia to India is currently in quarantine at the Delhi airport after his semen sample tested positive for the Ebola virus.

India Image/CIA
India
Image/CIA

According to the Indian government, the 26-year-old man was previously treated for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) while in Liberia and discharged on Sept. 30.

He arrived in Delhi on Nov. 10 carrying  a certificate of medical clearance from the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Government of Liberia mentioning that ‘he has successfully undergone care and treatment related to Ebola Virus Disease and after post treatment assessment he has been declared free of any clinical signs and symptoms and confirmed negative by laboratory analysis’.

While at the airport, he underwent mandatory Ebola screening and three PCR tests later all showed him negative for the potentially lethal virus.

Before releasing him from quarantine, a decision was taken to test his other body fluids. His semen sample tested at National Centre for Disease Control on 17th November, 2014 was found positive for Ebola Virus by RT-PCR. The tests for semen samples repeated at National Institute of Virology, Pune, on 17th November, 2014 also tested positive.

Related: Ebola virus in semen is the real deal….

He remains quarantined until his semen samples test negative for the Ebola virus due to the possibility of transmitting the virus sexually.

Currently, this person is not having any symptoms of the disease.

Indian health officials reiterate that the person concerned is a treated and cured case of Ebola Virus Disease. No cases of relapse of Ebola have been documented. All necessary precautions are being taken at the isolation facility. This would rule out even the remote possibility of spread of this disease by the sexual route. The situation is under control and there is no need for any alarm. However, all precautions are being taken in this regard.

 

For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page